The Detroit Lions have a pair of young cornerbacks who are expected to develop into solid contributors in Kelvin Sheppard's defense.
Ennis Rakestraw dealt with injuries his rookie season and Terrion Arnold was thrust into the role of starter quickly.
As a result, general manager Brad Holmes was willing to allocate free agent dollars to sign veteran D.J. Reed to a lucrative, long-term contract.
New ESPN NFL analyst Peter Schrager typically releases only one or two mock drafts annually that are based on the information he gathers from his sources.
Despite the Lions also having versatile defensive backs in Brian Branch and Amik Robertson, Schrager has the Lions targeting another cornerback in his first mock draft released since joining ESPN.
Will Johnson is a player that missed a significant amount of playing time last season, but despite a dip in his stock, many pundits like what the talented defensive back brings to the table.
As Schrager explained, "Johnson's stock has slipped a bit. He had a foot injury last season and was inconsistent for the Wolverines. He also sat out Michigan's pro day because of a hamstring injury. He's a top-level talent, though, and he'd be the perfect corner to complement Terrion Arnold."
Johnson played on the outside and flourished in Wink Martindale’s zone scheme. Many scouts believe the former Wolverines cornerback would be comfortable in man coverage due to his versatility and athleticism.
"He isn’t shy about getting physical at the tops of routes and in pursuit, but his tackling mechanics and execution need work," Dan Brugler described. "Overall, Johnson is more “good” than “great” in terms of twitch and speed, but he has outstanding eyes, feet and coverage IQ to match and make plays on the football. He projects as a day one starting outside cornerback in the NFL."
